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Leonard Ncube, Victoria Falls Reporter
TIKI Primary School in Lupane District has been closed and teachers have sought refuge at a police camp following attacks, some of them sexual, by suspected goblins, authorities have confirmed.

The Chronicle was told that both male and female teachers claim to have been sexually abused at night.

Strange happenings such as knocking on doors, banging of tables as well as footsteps including on roofs with no one in sight have been reported.

The school is located between Lupaka and Mzola areas and a cleansing ceremony has been set for tomorrow to chase away the suspected goblins.

Six of the teachers allegedly spent Tuesday night at Lupane Police Station and on Wednesday they reportedly travelled to Bulawayo to seek help from either prophets or inyangas.

The District Schools Inspector Mr Lovemore Ncube confirmed receiving a report on the goblins terrorising teachers. “We received such a report and we have sent it to the Provincial Education Director. It’s true that teachers are not conducting lessons and parents have been assured that on Monday the kids will go back to school after a cleansing ceremony,” said Mr Ncube.

He said the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education will be guided by the community following the problem but teachers will compensate for lost time during the holidays.

“The community has sent a delegation to the chief to seek permission to conduct a cleansing ceremony. It is said that the suspected goblins are sexually abusing both male and female teachers,” Mr Ncube said.

A villager who spoke on condition of anonymity said some of the strange occurrences’ take place during the day. “The latest incident happened on Tuesday morning when a female teacher was in class while pupils were writing an exercise. She went to write something on the board and when she returned to her chair she noticed it was smeared with blood.

“She alerted the headmaster who came to check and he accidentally stepped on some blood stains on the floor and banging of desks started. Teachers and pupils panicked and fled because of the deafening sound yet they couldn’t see any human being. Even at night teachers don’t sleep because of strange things where doors are banged while there are also footsteps,” said a villager from the area.

Last year teachers at Sibangani Primary School in the same district fled from the institution claiming goblins were sexually abusing them.

Villagers sought the services of some prophets popularly known as wafa wafa from Tsholotsho for a cleansing ceremony and the problem stopped.

In 2015, teachers at Siyangaya Primary School in Tsholotsho also fled from the school claiming that a baboon was having sex with them at night.

Another school in the province, Nengasha Primary School in Hwange was also last year affected by suspected goblins and was opened days into the third term.

@ncubeleon